The Well Traveled Cat

Now you wouldn’t believe it, but this beautiful feline specimen has been part of the Wellstead family for 17 years, a period of time spanning (almost) three nations and an innumerable collection of houses – and she’s accompanied us throughout. This ball of cuddles has traveled more than many people I know, and it’s time that I give the old girl some credit.

Therefore, I present to you, a list of Katie’s biggest accomplishments to date:

Surviving alone on the streets after being abandoned

Saving her litter of kittens by taking them one-at-a-time, day-by-day to the doorstep of a stranger

Slowly developing affectionate tendencies towards the family that took her in (yours truly)

Quickly adapting to numerous house moves during the early immigration process

Learning the correct way to respond to various animals whilst living on a farm

Overcoming travel sickness for a 1 hour drive to the airport, a 3 hour wait at a noisy terminal with strange noises and people, two take offs and a landing, further waiting at another terminal with strange accents, another 1 hour drive and a two night stay at a hotel before moving into a new house with new smells and animals (phew!)

And after all that, she still curls on our laps and sings to us.

At one point in time, my family and I questioned the ethics of putting such a tiny, fragile creature through so much stress, even contemplating the unbearable – leaving her behind; and it’s not just the emotional burden that had us thinking but also the sheer cost of immigrating with an animal. Did you know that a one way plane ticket for a small cat cost us roughly £1,000? Youch! Nevertheless, Katie is part of the family and we did not intend on parting ways so easily. So with us, the little cat came.

We took a big gamble. An expensive and potentially dangerous gamble. Luckily for us, we had a resilient and feisty feline who was willing to fight for us and adapt to an unfamiliar culture as much as we were. Another cat may not have taken things so lightly. It was a tough decision to make, but I couldn’t imagine it ending any other way.

This is the story of Katie – the immigrant kitty, the well traveled cat and my loyal and loving best friend.